Using DNA metabarcoding to detect burrowing seabirds in a remote landscape

• Published in: Conservation Science and Practice
• Main Authors: Julie C. McInnes, Jeremy P. Bird, Bruce E. Deagle, Andrea M. Polanowski, Justine D. Shaw
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2021
• Subjects: ecosystem recovery; eDNA; eradication; faces; noninvasive; Pelecanoides; Ecology; QH540-549.5; General. Including nature conservation; geographical distribution; QH1-199.5; Antarctic; Antarc*; Macquarie Island
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.439; https://doaj.org/article/1c27fd0f26a049b6aaab2c7d1e3053f3

Abstract Species inventories and biodiversity assessments are critical to conservation. Yet cryptic species or recolonizing species can be challenging to detect. DNA metabarcoding provides an alternative tool to identify species that can be difficult to observe during field surveys. We test the efficacy of DNA analysis to identify burrowing petrel species in a rapidly changing landscape, on a remote sub‐Antarctic island following pest eradication. Discarded feathers and scats provided high quality DNA for species identification, assisting in detection of new species arrivals and new breeding sites across Macquarie Island. We highlight how DNA metabarcoding informs species inventories and is a valuable tool to complement seabird field surveys.